Bilawal rejects narrative of system failure, points to Tharparkar’s progress
THARPARKAR
Speaking at the inauguration of Phase III of the Thar Coal Project’s Block II on Monday, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari firmly rejected claims that the country’s governance system has collapsed.
He presented the socio-economic transformation of Tharparkar as direct proof of the success of the 1973 Constitution and the 18th Amendment. Countering critics and calls for new provinces, Bilawal argued that if political opponents insist the system has failed, control of Islamabad should be handed over to the people of Tharparkar to fix it.
He took a sharp jab at political rivals engaging in divisive politics in Karachi, while emphasizing that Thar now generates 14 percent of the nation’s cheapest electricity, saves up to $1.6 billion annually in foreign exchange reserves, and employs local residents for 94 percent of its workforce.
At the same event, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah highlighted the project’s operational milestones, announcing that the self-financed Phase III expansion will boost the mine’s annual capacity from 7.6 million to 11.2 million tonnes.
The Chief Minister noted that this increased production will allow the 660-megawatt Lucky Electric power plant to shift entirely to domestic coal, bringing total generation from Thar coal to 1,980 megawatts.
Shah explained that power generated from local coal is three times cheaper than imported alternatives, benefiting 4.5 million households daily while saving the national exchequer approximately Rs15 billion in annual fuel costs and $220 million in foreign exchange. He added that the expansion will also pave the way for the upcoming Thar Rail project to distribute coal across the country.
